Zine thing.

PICK YOUR POISON, #1-3; YOU IDIOT!, #1-2

Can you believe it? Someone actually put a good amount of thought and time into doing two kick-ass 'zines, Pick Your Poison and You Idiot! outta Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Pick Your Poison issues are mainly autobiographical stories that thankfully avoid the self-indulgent whining or posturing of the more "'zinier" autobiographical stuff, and they focus on the author's troublemaking, chicanery, sarcasm, and ability to be in the right place at the right time. You Idiot! is put out by the same guy and features more of the same great writing but is a little more thematic in nature. The first one reviews video games that have an anti-drug or religious manager, as well as a religious anti-rock and roll book. And the second one has more of the same, reviewing anti-drug commercials, but also looking at the Hulk Hogan rap album, dollar store product reviews, and more. The writing is great and the 'zines are full of material that you can both identify with and laugh at. They're a buck each plus a couple stamps. Send to: PO Box 8995, Minneapolis, MN 55408

TRAVELING AMERICA BROKE

This has been out for a while, but I never got to finish it until recently. It is a self-published book written by Phoenix area activist Joey Grether. He steps on the path that Kerouac laid out, and doesn't look back--no money, shit job, finding a ride, heading out, enjoying life, and questioning long-held beliefs. Fans of Cometbus and stuff of that ilk, would appreciate this. Send an e-mail for more info to: [e-mail]

RAZORCAKE, #15

This mag has stayed consistently great since its inception--great writing and photos, regular columns, reviews, comics, etc. Razorcake covers great punk and other music without getting bogged down in dogma or overzealous ideology, and remembers that it's all supposed to be fun. This issue has interviews with the legendary Feederz, the Knockout Pills, Jon Miner, Turbonegro, and Nardwuar the Human Serviette takes on Vanilla Ice. A must read. Send $3 to: PO Box 42129, Los Angeles, CA 90042

ELK, #2 AND #3

Jocko Weyland puts out Elk; the guy who wrote the killer book The Answer is Never. These are seemingly random collections of oddball photos and drawings, maybe some found stuff, some newspaper clippings, and, well, other stuff too. You may ask yourself after checking it out "but what does it all mean?" And, well, if you have to ask you will never know. Send just a couple bucks to: 195 Powers St, Brooklyn, NY 11215

PEOPLE LOOKED BORED, LIKE EXPECTING MORE

This one is sort of out there, put out by an entity called Refuse To Be Smart, which appears to be a kind of guerilla-graffiti deal. The 'zine is a series of collages poking fun at the mainstream and politics and Hollywood and you name it. Then in the back there is an order form for stuff as well as a Web address. I guess the pictures do the talking here, and there's some cool stuff to peep. Check the site www.refusetobesmart.com for more info.

BOARDSTEIN, #23

German is, to me, a crazy language in that instead of using compound modifiers or multiple nouns they just string along all of them and make one big world. Sometimes the words get crazy long. And then, since this is a German skate mag, there are random words of English scattered around as well, such as proper names and names of tricks. Every country with a skate scene worth two rats' asses has its own skate mag, and Boardstein is one of the better. You don't have to speak German to get it, although I am sure that would help. It comes with a CD. I would write to them for more info at: [e-mail]

POOR AND FORGOTTEN, #13

A politico-punk 'zine, this one has rants and band interviews including the Gutskirts, The Enemy Myself, and Pretty Faces. It's a good read, although one thing caught my eye: In the rant about the war with Iraq the author said that it was going to cost the US $200 million. Actually, it's estimated at around four billion a month, which is over $200 million every two days. If you're gonna take a stand get facts right. A couple bucks go to: PO Box 1299, Boston, MA 02130.